The Warning
by Zoken
Summary: James and Lily Potter and Albus Dumbledore recieved copies of the Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling. They read them, they have made plans. They have made changes. How will this effect the life of Harry Potter?
1. Chapter 1

The Warning

Tomes of What is to Come

The Potter home was a lovely one. It was nestled on an isolated hill top some miles south of the border of Scotland. There were a wide assortment of brooms and vehicles in the garage. The walls were covered with pictures of family and friends. One large one of four school boys seeming to cheer to whoever passed by. A picture hung on the wall of a rather large man and a woman who was obviously his wife. The wife was boney and horse-faced. The picture did not move. Its placement was such that it was obvious that the picture was only there as a common courtesy. There was a picture of weddings on the wall, one of a man with unruly black hair and a woman with long red hair. Then another picture showed a man and a woman with blond hair and round faces.

"Love?" James called to his wife. "Are you sure you don't want some help?"

Lily rolled her eyes. "I'm just walking into the living room to sit down James," she replied drolly. Sadly, her husband was a nervous father. He wasn't allowing her to do the littlest bit of housework, though she did rather enjoy that, or leave the house (unless she got Sirius to distract him for her). She was seven months pregnant with her son, and she was waiting for her husband to be less annoying so she could make her announcement; she'd decided on their son's name.

With the sound of ripping fabric and a flash of light, there were seven thuds on the ground. James came tearing into the room, afraid Lily had fallen. He found her on her knees staring at a book, with six others lying around her. "Lily, are you okay?"

"James..." she said in a scared voice. "These books..." She turned the one in her hands. The title was **Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone**. "The name..."

"What about it?" he asked. He was a little freaked by his last name on the book.

"I decided today..." she told him. "The baby's name... I decided to name him Harry."

James took a moment to process that information.

Lily opened the book. "James," she said, holding the open book in her hands. "Look at this copy write date."

"The whatty-what date?" James asked, looking where she was pointing.

"Copy write," She repeated. "It's when the book was first published... I swear, should have married the werewolf."

This was hers and James' constant joke. She and Remus had been very close, being quite alike. She would often joke she had flipped a coin to decide which one she would date.

"Its... well, that makes it obvious it's a fake," James said.

"If it were a fake, they would try to make it believable, not like they were from... from the future. James, these are books about our son."

"Maybe we should... we should read them..." James suggested.

Lily was not about to argue. Lily, being the faster reader, read them first, and then would hand them off to James. Several times she had to restrain him and make him finish the book. It was a hard read for them, to learn the truth of what was to come, what would pass. To learn harsh truths about their friends and about those they thought were their friends. James swore to himself to buy many gifts for certain people, and that he would reap great vengeance upon others .Many days, and many tears later they had completed the books.

James set aside Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and turned to his wife. "What... what do we do now?" James said, drying his eyes. The things his son would go through... he had to stop them somehow.

"I know what we have to do," Lily said in a sad tone as she patted her swollen abdomen. "First thing is first, we go see Prof. Dumbledore... We'll need him to work with us."

* * *

Later in the Headmaster's Office

"I see," Albus said, after having read the books in a remarkable short amount of time. Tears had leaked down his face at the end of almost every book. He looked at himself in these stories. Was this really what he would have done to the poor boy? "They are real," he sighed simply. "I have to agree with your decision Lily."

"What decision?" James asked. Lily seemed to already have a plan ready, and somehow, in that way he always did, Dumbledore knew about it. James knew enough to trust his wife, but also knew enough that when she didn't tell him what would happen, it meant trouble.

"We're going to continue on as if nothing has happened," Lily replied, her voice cracking.

"What do you mean?" James asked, standing from his chair looking scandalized.

"We're going to give birth to our son, he's going to be named Harry, We're going to name Sirius his godfather," Lily paused. James was nodding. Then she continued. "We're going to make Peter our secret keeper, we're not going to tell anyone, we're going to act like we know almost nothing."

"But Lily... That means you die..." James pleaded. James was the sort of person to give anything and everything for those he cared about, but he was also the sort of person who couldn't not try to fix things.

She nodded. "Our deaths are necessary," she whispered, taking her husband's hand. "Harry needs the protection it will provide him."

"But... but that means your horrid sister and her beastly husband," James argued.

"The blood protection is what is necessary," Dumbledore explained. "If it weren't so powerful, I would never allow it."

"Blood..." James whispered. His eyes suddenly lit up. "There is another option. If I give him the blood protection..."

"You don't have any living relatives," Albus interrupted.

"Sirius," Lily whispered in awe. She struck the heel of her palm to her forehead. "of course!" She had the same realization that James had just had.

"Please explain," asked Albus intently. He'd always known that James and Sirius were quite close, but to his knowledge the Potters and the Blacks were only related through a few marriages, not by blood.

"Well," James began, energetically. "Sirius and I heard about this muggle custom called 'blood brothers', and we wondered how well it could work for wizards... Long story short we created a ceremony where in we share our blood. My blood runs in his veins and his blood runs in my veins." James held out the palm of his hand to show a scar. "This scar is one be both bear on our palms. It is healed, but will never fade. It is the sign of our bond."

Albus smiled. "Well, it seems fate smiles. Once again James you prove to be clever enough and just reckless enough to be a hero. If you switch positions that should work... Your son will live, posses the blood protection, and he will need to live with Sirius."

"Is there anything you can do to protect Frank and Alice?" Lily wondered. "What happened to them in the books… and their poor son?"

"I shall do what I can," Albus promised. "However if it becomes apparent that we know of what is to come… if they suspect that we have a source inside their ranks. I know you don't like Severus, James, but he has been a loyal member to the order since he joined."

James looked at the desk. "Just remind him… he's a member of the Order, which means that if he's in trouble, I come running to save him. I don't like him, no, but he is a brother-in-arms."

"And to think," Dumbledore said, almost playfully. "Some of your teachers credited you as being immature,"

Many plans went into effect. Albus had already heard the prophesy that the books informed him of. He sent both the Potters and the Longbottom's into hiding. Albus had the books burned so that no one else could benefit from them. He also had yet another long discussion with his friends Nicolas and Pernelle about that stone. Best to nip that one in the bud early.


	2. Exile's End

The Warning: pt II

Exile's End

Harry felt a prod at his shoulder. He didn't want to wake up. Slowly he lifted an eye lid. Then he slid backwards. There was someone standing over him. He grabbed his glasses, pulling them on quickly. It was only Sirius. "SIRIUS!" Harry yelled at his godfather. "What are you doing?"

Sirius was bouncing with a manic smile. "YAY!" he yelled like a child on Christmas. "You're up! Today's the day!"

Harry couldn't be more confused. Sirius was only ever up this early and this energetic on Christmas. It was about as far from Christmas as you could get, it was the end of July, Harry's birthday in fact. "I'm glad you're happy about my birthday," Harry groaned, trying to pull the blankets back over his head, "But I want to sleep in... its summer."

"No!" Sirius said, jerking the sheets down. "Today's the big day!"

"How is my eleventh birthday more important than my tenth?" Harry grumbled.

"Remember how when you ask about your parents and stuff like that, I always say, I'll tell you when you're older? Today, you're older."

That jerked Harry awake quickly. Harry stared at Sirius anxiously. Harry asked questions about the strange things that happened around him, but Sirius and Uncle Lupin always deflected him by saying "We'll tell you when you're older." "You'll tell me?" Harry asked excitedly. 

"Get dressed," Sirius told him with a wild smile on his face. "We'll talk over breakfast."

Harry had lived for the last ten years of his life with his godfather, a man named Sirius Black. Unlike most other adults in his life, Sirius insisted on being addressed by his first name. The one thing that Harry was not allowed to call him was "Padfoot", a name frequently used by Harry's uncle Remus Lupin. Likewise, Harry was forbidden to call Uncle Remus "Moony" despite the fact that Sirius did frequently. Sirius had always insisted on keeping his promises, and to day would be the day that Sirius told him everything. Harry couldn't wait!

Harry showered and dressed and was in the kitchen, shocked to find an enormous spread on the table; sausage, bacon, toast, waffles, eggs, ham, gravy, and more. Harry loaded up his plate and sat in front of Sirius expectantly. 

"Harry, you're a wizard," Sirius confessed. Sirius Black and Harry Potter had been living just outside Glasgow. They lived as muggles, and Harry enjoyed the occasional visit from his Uncle Lupin. Harry didn't have much in the way of friends, but his one friend was a close friend, Hermione Granger. They both went to a nearby private school. They were both fairly introverted unless they were together and alone, then they laughed for hours, joked with each other. They were like brother and sister. Sirius and Dan Granger often joked together about marrying the two. Harry never saw the words "You're a Wizard" coming out of Sirius' mouth.

"What?" asked the young boy.

"Try the sausage," Sirius advised. "You are a wizard. Your parents were wizards, I'm a wizard (which, by the way, is how we have this feast), and your Uncle Lupin is a wizard. We didn't tell you because..." Sirius paused, not sure how to explain to an eleven year old that he is a celebrity. "Well, remember how me and Moony are always telling you you're special?"

"Yeah," Harry replied, wondering why on earth they would keep this from him.

"You're more special than we let on Harry. You are famous. You have your own children's bedtime story." Sirius sighed. "We wanted to protect you from the dangers of celebrity."

Harry paused to think about that. He was very confused. All his life he hadn't been special anywhere except in his home and around Hermione. Now he was famous? Sirius must be lying. He occasionally pulled little jokes on Harry, but Harry was having trouble seeing the punch line in this one."

"Harry, have I ever lied to you?" Sirius considered what he'd just said, then amended. "Have I ever tried to hurt you?"

Harry thought on that. Sirius had always leveled with Harry. If he couldn't answer something, Sirius said that. Sure, Sirius had told little lies for his jokes and pranks, but it was never meant to hurt Harry. Sirius, had in fact, always treated Harry closely, like a brother. "Keep going," Harry prodded. 

"This opens a whole new world for you Harry, including your new school, Hogwarts. You start September first," Sirius laid Harry's letter down. Sirius' face dropped. Now things wouldn't be funny. He had to tell Harry something that could never be funny. "However... There is another part of your story I have to tell you."

"Why I'm famous?" Harry asked. 

Sirius nodded. "The man who murdered your parents was called Voldemort. He wanted to kill you; he killed your parents because they wouldn't give you up." Sirius put his hand on Harry's shoulder, hoping to make sure the boy understood. "Harry, your parents loved you SO much that they would die rather than give you to him."

"Why would he want to kill me?" Harry asked, fearfully.

"That is a complicated part," Sirius said.

Harry sighed and looked at the table. That was usually what Sirius said before he told Harry "I'll tell you when you're older."

"Do you know what a 'prophesy' is?" Sirius asked.

Harry's head snapped up. He hadn't been expecting Sirius to actually explain. "Yeah," he replied, "Hermione told me about them when she had to go to bible school in second grade."

"There was a prophesy made, about Voldemort and the one who would have the power to destroy him." Sirius fiddled with the bacon on his plate. He barely understood all this prophesy business himself. How was he supposed to explain it sufficiently to an eleven –year-old? "Voldemort believed you were the one, so he went to kill you."

"But my dad killed him before he could kill me," Harry said, supplying the last bit of the story he knew.

"Harry... That is the closest thing to a lie I've told you." Sirius flinched at the look of hurt on Harry's face. Sirius had never told Harry about storks, Father Christmas, or Easter Bunnies. He was honest to a fault with Harry. It had hurt him to have to lie to his surrogate son. "Voldemort tried to kill you after your father was dead, HOWEVER your father left a protection in you, by giving his life to save you, he left you immune to Voldemort's magic. The curse Voldemort used should have killed you, it's called the Killing Curse, but instead it rebounded upon him leaving you with nothing but that scar. It shattered Voldemort... nearly killing him." 

"Nearly?" Harry asked.

"Harry," Sirius began. This was a complicated thing, something he had thought about many a night while he lived as a muggle. "Death is a natural thing, as natural as birth and breathing. Voldemort had made himself so UNnatural... I don't think he had enough human left in him to die." Sirius sighed. "I, and a few others, believe that he is still out there. He has no power left, but he is looking for a way to get it back."

Harry thought deeply upon what he'd just been told.

"Your parents left specific instructions in their will where I should take you to live," Sirius replied. "that is why we live here, and that is why we have been living as muggles."

"Muggles?" Harry asked.

"It means non-magic folk," Sirius explained. "There are a few things I should explain. Okay, enough Serious Sirius," the man said, wiping the tears that had brimmed in his eyes. "Starters, Voldemort and his bunch, Death Eaters, they hated people who weren't of pure wizarding blood. The ones they hated the most were the ones like your mum, she was what we called a 'Muggle-born' witch. Mean's her parents were muggles is all."

"What does that make me?" Harry asked curiously.

"Well," Sirius thought for a moment. "Your dad was a Pure-blood, like me, but with a muggle-born mum, you'd probably be considered a half-blood. Doesn't matter. Despite what anyone tells you, Blood doesn't count for anything."

Harry laughed, as he always did at Sirius' lame pun.

"We're going on a shopping spree before the party today," Sirius said with a smile as he pushed himself up from the table. Harry, who had just realized that throughout their conversation he'd been eating and had actually finished his breakfast, looked up at the man who had raised him. "Get your jacket and helmet," Sirius chided.

"Can't we just walk to the shopping mall down the way?" Harry asked.

Sirius gave Harry a smile that seemed to radiate an old sense of trouble-making.


	3. In Which There Is Shopping

The Warning Pt. III

In Which There is Shopping

"So where are we going shopping?" Harry asked as he put on his coat.

"Diagon Alley," He informed him. "London."

"Will we be back in time?" Harry asked as he climbed into the sidecar on Sirius' old Motorbike and strapped on his helmet. They had made plans with the Granger's for a party for Harry's birthday that afternoon.

Sirius let out a loud bark of a laugh. "Just wait," he chuckled. Their house was outside of town, and surrounded by tall trees. Sirius had made sure that no one could see in for just this day. He kicked the bike to roaring life and then hit a button just above the gas cap. The bike, the sidecar, Sirius, and Harry vanished. Or at least as far as Harry could tell they had vanished. Harry couldn't see anything, which is why he accidentally hit himself in the face. "Invisibility Booster," Sirius told him.

"But why are we invisible?" Harry asked. 

"Because of this," Sirius said, and Harry felt a lurch in his stomach as the bike lifted off and they flew into the morning sky.

As they flew high over the country side Harry asked Sirius a question that was nagging at him. "What do you think Hermione will say?"

Sirius bit his lip. "I don't think you should tell her Harry," Sirius called over the roaring engine and rushing wind. "Strictly speaking, you aren't supposed to tell muggles about magic unless they're your family." It hurt Sirius a bit to tell Harry this; to know that Harry wouldn't be able to share a part of his life with his best friend. He could only imagine

"But she's..." Harry began.

"I'm sorry Harry," Sirius cut him off.

Once above cloud cover, Sirius turned off the invisibility booster, and carefully handed Harry his letter again.

Harry was quiet for a few moments, then opened his letter and read through it. "This says I can't do magic outside of school," Harry called to his godfather.

"Don't worry about it," Sirius replied, they were getting close now.

"But, won't I get in trouble?"

"Trust me," Sirius called back to him, "they won't know. My brother, Regulus, used to do stuff all the time during the summers. My Sainted Mother," Sirius grimaced as he thought about her. "Always said that that rule was for m... for muggle-borns."

"Sirius," Harry called, wanting to get an answer to another of his old questions. "Why did you hate your family?"

This had always been a subject that was sure to get Harry an "I'll tell you when you're older" remark. Maybe today though, Harry hoped, Sirius would be willing to talk about it.

"We're on final approach," Sirius called, changing the subject as he turned the invisibility booster back on. "This is going to be a heck of an entrance." Once they were low enough that they could only be seen from Diagon Alley, Sirius fumbled for a moment before finally turning off the invisibility booster. They made a loud and bumpy entrance into Diagon Alley, bypassing the leaky cauldron by landing there out right. Sirius parked it in front of Gringott's. "Blood hell," Sirius sighed. "Been forever since I've been in here." he smiled at Harry.

He took Harry down to the vault. Harry had been shocked by the amount of money that was in his trust vault, and Sirius said that this was only the tip of the iceberg. The Potters had been a wealthy family, and his parents had done a good deal to increase the wealth. Next they went to purchase Harry's wand. Sirius waited patiently and proudly as Harry seemed to wave half the wands in the store. Finally the fateful holly/phoenix feather wand chose him. When Mr. Ollivander explained that this wand was brother to Voldemort's wand, both Harry and Sirius exchanged significant looks. Harry didn't feel ashamed though. He felt that his wand's relationship to Voldemort's was something it couldn't help, much like Sirius' relation to his despised family. They next went to get Harry's robes, and there Harry met his first schoolmate. Sirius slipped off, promising to return with a fine surprise for the boy. Harry had to endure the pale-blonde-haired boy's comments on blood purity by himself. But knowing what Sirius had said, Harry didn't reply. The only thing he'd said at all was when Malfoy had asked for Harry's family name. Harry turned to him coldly as Madame Malkin told him he was finished. "Potter," Harry said strongly. Sirius showed up outside with a beautiful snowy-white owl in a cage.

"Dead useful, owls," Sirius commented. "They deliver magical mail. I chose this lovely lady," he complimented the owl, "Because she was professionally trained.

"She's beautiful, Sirius," Harry whispered in awe. "Thank you."

Next were the apothecary and cauldrons. After that Sirius spent a few moments staring at a display in a shop window showing brooms. Harry was confused, but didn't admit it. Finally they decided to go and get the books.

"What do you mean I can't bring them all?" Harry heard a familiar voice whine.

"Well... er..." tried the thick voice of Rubeus Hagrid. "Strictly speakin' Firs' years aren' supposed to be bringin' materials for a third year."

"Hermione?!" Harry called. The two hugged each other quickly and confessed in unison that they were magical. Sirius chuckled at the two of them and waved at Dan and Emma Granger, who came over full of questions that, sadly, Hagrid couldn't answer.

"Thank ye' Sirius," Hagrid said quietly. 

Sirius gave the half-giant a pat on the arm. Sirius remembered a part in the Potter's will "Be wonderful to Hagrid"

Hermione introduced Harry to Hagrid. Harry liked Hagrid, despite Hagrid's fearsome looks. Hagrid didn't stumble over himself talking to Harry like most of the witches and wizards he'd met that day.

"I was afraid I'd have to lie to you," Harry confessed to Hermione. 

Hermione laughed and said. "Well I couldn't wait to talk to you about this..." She opened one of her books to show a baby picture of Harry blinking up at them. Harry recognized the picture, as it was one of the five pictures Sirius kept by his bed.

Once they purchased their books, without the advanced texts Hermione sadly had to leave behind, Sirius announced his intention to go shopping in a wizarding appliance store, inviting the Grangers to come along and take advantage of their daughter's disposition. The Grangers agreed, only if Sirius would do the installation and help with the paper-work.

Harry and Hermione were allowed to wander about examining things for themselves. Suddenly Harry ran right into a girl about a year younger than him. He stood up and the girl gawped at him. He offered her his hand to help her up. "Ginny," the girl yelped suddenly. She had meant to say, "I'm Ginny, every so pleased to meet you," However it just hadn't come out correctly. 

"I'm Harry," he said. He was blushing slightly from the way Ginny was looking at him, and Hermione was getting an almost wicked expression. "This is my best friend Hermione," he said, introducing the muggle-born.

"GINNY!" came a loud voice and Molly Weasley, trailed by four of her seven children, came up quickly. "Thought I'd lost you for a moment," she said. "Who are your friends dear?"

"Hermione," Ginny said, but then more eagerly said, "He's Harry Potter mum." 

"Really?" asked Ms. Weasley. "Pleased to meet you Harry, Hermione. I'm Molly, you met my daughter Ginny. These are my sons, Percy, Fred, George... no thats George and that's Fred. And this is Ron."

Percy shook his hand stiffly, and ignored Hermione. The twins however made a point to both give Hermione a kiss on the cheek, causing the young girl to blush madly. Ron shook Harry's hand and smiled. The twins and Ron and Ginny taught Harry about Quidditch right there and then. Harry believed from this moment on he would be friends with at least these four Weasley's, but he also liked Mrs. Weasley because she was polite and caring.

A thought suddenly struck Harry. His birthday parties were always small affairs, as he didn't any friends besides Hermione. He grabbed Sirius' arm and called, "Sirius,"

The older wizard turned away from Hermione's parents. "What's up, Pup?" 

"Can I invite more people to my birthday party today?" Harry asked, a bit of begging in his voice.

Sirius faked tearing up. "Pup... you have no idea how long I've waited to hear you say that. Invite everybody, anybody."

Harry turned to Molly and her children. "Can you all come to my birthday party today? We live in Glasgow, and four twenty two Tureen Drive."

Sirius leaned in, "We're on the floo," he told Molly. "Password is 'Kennel'."

"We would be honored," Molly said with a bright smile. "Such a sweet, polite boy. Would it be alright if my husband came?" 

"Please bring him," Sirius begged playfully. It had been a long time since he had talked with any adult wizards aside from Remus.

Harry turned to Hagrid, "You can come too If you like." Harry smiled at the large man.

Sirius thought the groundskeeper was going to cry. "Y' sure abou' tha' Harry?" Hagrid asked. "I'm a bi' noticeable."

"We insist," Sirius added. "Lily and James spoke highly of you in their will, and I, frankly, remember you saving my tail on more than one occasion."

Hagrid looked at Sirius confusedly. Of course Hagrid wouldn't remember the event, Sirius had been in his dog form at the time when Hagrid had saved him from an acromantula hunting party.


End file.
